SBA Report Offers Small Business Statistics

Here’s some cheerful news for business incubation programs: The state of small business was good at the start of the 21st century. The number of small businesses with paid employees rose by 5 percent in 1998-99, and nonfarm proprietors’ income rose 7.9 percent in 1998 and 7.2 percent in 1999, substantially more than the 2.7 percent increase in corporate profits reported over the 1997-99 period, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy report The State of Small Business, 1999-2000. The report examines the role of small businesses in the economy and provides statistics including small business financing data and the numbers of businesses owned by women (up 16 percent between 1992 and 1997) and by minorities (up 26 percent during 1992-97). It also looks at changes in regulations that affect small businesses. The full report is available in PDF format at www.sba.gov/advo/stats/stateofsb99_00.pdf.

Web Site, Booklet Explain Tax Credits

Investors and community development professionals looking to tap into the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program can find information tailored to their needs in two new resources. The NMTC Program offers tax credits for certain qualified business investments that assist distressed communities. To be eligible for the credits, individuals and corporations must invest in certified community development entities, which may include for-profit community development financial institutions, for-profit subsidiaries of nonprofit community development programs, and Small Business Administration-designated Specialized Small Business Investment Companies.

Investors can learn how these credits can reduce their federal tax liability at a new Web site established by New Markets Advisors. This organization – comprising representatives of the National Congress for Community Economic Development (NCCED), Community Development Venture Capital Alliance, The Enterprise Foundation, Local Initiatives Support Coalition, National Community Capital Association and National Community Investment Fund – offers information about NMTC investment opportunities at www.newmarketsadvisors.org.

Development professionals can explore three hypothetical applications of the program to community development projects in NCCED’s new publication, Taking Advantage of the New Markets Tax Credit Program: Case Study Scenarios. The 20-page booklet outlines potential benefits of the NMTC Program in the contexts of a commercial real estate development, a business equity investment and a revolving loan fund, and includes flow charts and financial tables. The booklet also describes how an organization can formally apply to participate in the program. Read a PDF version of the NCCED booklet at www.ncced.org/publications/LLC_Report2.pdf. For general information about the NMTC Program, visit www.cdfifund.gov.

Report Compares 4 Nations’ Incubators

A new international study provides a descriptive and qualitative look at the faces of business incubation in France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. Incubators: The Emergence of a New Industry compares characteristics and strategies of incubation programs created by local economic development organizations, corporations, private investors, and academic and scientific institutions in the four nations. The report examines the development of public and private incubators, describes industry players, and identifies incubation characteristics that help make the concept successful. It notes that incubators have surfaced in nearly all developed countries and in many emerging countries. Philippe Albert, Michel Bernasconi and Lynda Gaynor conducted the study as part of a multi-year research program on incubators at CERAM Sophia Antipolis in Nice, France. Their goals included identifying international developments from which France’s incubation programs could learn. The English version of the report is available in PDF format to NBIA members at www.nbia.org/resource_center/downloads/
download.php?file_name=newindustry_mem.pdf.

Learning Outreach From Colleges and Universities

Anyone interested in creating or expanding a university-affiliated community outreach program should take a look at a new report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Lessons from the Community Outreach Partnership Center Program showcases lessons learned from 25 colleges, universities and community colleges that used HUD’s Community Outreach Partnership Center grants to develop community out reach programs. According to the report, many colleges and universities attempt to apply their intellectual, economic and human resources toward the betterment of their communities. However, those with the most successful outreach programs shared similar qualities: strong faculty leaders who pressed for visibility within the institution; central offices within the institution to coordinate operations; and faculty who designed curriculum and research applicable to the program’s mission. To read the full report, visit www.huduser.org/publications/pdf/lessons_complete.pdf. For information regarding HUD’s Community Outreach Partnership Center grants, visit www.hud.gov.